Leadership Caffeine: Frame Carefully to Improve Discussion Quality
Filed under: Leadership, Leadership Caffeine, Making Decisions, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
Decisions propel people, teams and organizations forward. Get more right than wrong…especially the big ones, and the only thing standing in the way of success is the critical issue of execution. And of course, most decisions start with a discussion.
One of your important jobs as a leader is to ensure that your team is engaging in the right discussions prior to offering a solution. Paying attention to how an issue is framed is an important part of monitoring discussion quality.
Framing-Beware of Splinters:
One of the constant contributors to less than ideal discussion processes comes from how leaders or team members frame a situation. Whether it’s described as a positive or a negative…a crisis or an opportunity…and the assumptions that are made, all serve as part of the frame for a situation. Framing drives the discussion and importantly, it steers and biases solution set development.
If the boss describes a situation as a problem in need of immediate repair, the discussion and solution set will focus on fire-drill type repairs. That’s OK if it’s a fire drill, but perhaps there are bigger issues that might be solved by reframing the situation as an opportunity to solve a systemic problem.
Management teams frame their strategic environment by assessing the current state and making assumption about the future. Consider:
Americans don’t care about quality..they are focused on style and will buy a new car every two to three years and, the threat from foreign automobile manufacturers is relatively small. (GM in the 1970’s)
Our biggest threat will be from a well-armed nation-state. (The U.S. Government up until 9/11, as they used the framing of the Cold War to drive thinking and preparation.)
Managers bias a decision discussion as soon as they open their mouths and offer their characterization of an issue and/or their perceived best solution. Again, that might be appropriate in some circumstances, but in others, it will preclude alternative idea development.
One of the most common issues many firms struggle with today is how to determine the role of social media in their business. I’ve participated in a number of these discussion with clients, and observed repeatedly that the managers and teams who view social media as a threat (a waste of time and a potential liability) develop restrictive policies, while those who see it as an opportunity (new way to engage clients and promote) develop policies that encourage experimentation.
Frames are powerful…and we offer them without thinking about the impact they have on others we’re looking to for input. However, with a bit of discretion and some deliberate practice developing good framing habits, managers can improve discussion quality surrounding decisions almost immediately.
Six Ideas for Improving Discussion Quality through Better Framing:
1. Manager Hold Back: ask others for their description of a problem/situation before you offer your perspective.
2. Frame like Switzerland: offer only neutral descriptions…neither positive or negative, and see how the discussion develops.
3. Develop Dueling Frames: for every situation, encourage team members to develop two completely different description (frames) of a situation. For the serious issues, frame the situation as both a crisis for one discussion and an opportunity for the other.
4. Prior Planning Prevents Poor Framing: teach your teams to frame first before solving. Their discussions should lead off with a description of the issue (the frame) and people should be encouraged to challenge these frames for validity.
5. Stop, Look and Clarify the Frame! Many discussions take on a life of their own and the frame gets lost in the emotions and politics. Regularly stop discussions to reaffirm or challenge the original frame.
6. Beware of Perfect Frames: things aren’t always neat and clean, especially when talking about strategic options in this fast-changing world. If your assumptions begin to sound GMish and too overwhelmingly supportive of your direction or investment, it’s time to look harder at your situation.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
For relatively little effort, you can achieve significant improvement in discussion clarity and decision quality. Starting today, watch how you and others frame issues and encourage everyone to put the time in early in the discussion to ensure good solution set development. Measure twice, cut once.
–
About Art Petty:
Art Petty is a Leadership & Career Coach helping motivated professionals of all levels achieve their potential. In addition to working with highly motivated professionals, Art frequently works with project teams in pursuit of high performance. Art’s second book, Leadership Caffeine-Ideas to Energize Your Professional Development, will be published in September of 2011.
Contact Art via e-mail to discuss a coaching, workshop or speaking engagement. Check out Art’s on-line “Professional Development Sprints,” designed for the busy professional.
Leadership Caffeine: Assessing the View on You
Filed under: Leadership, Leadership Caffeine, Professional Growth, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
Just about all of us have had that experience where we’ve heard our voice on an audio recording or viewed ourselves on a video recording. “Aack, who is that?” or, “Do I really look/sound like that?” are frequent reactions.
Yes, you do.
The stranger on the recording or the weirdo who clearly needs to drop a few pounds, update the wardrobe and get a new hairstylist might be foreign to you, but it’s who and what everyone else hears and sees every day.
And by the way, the perception of you by others, as a professional, as a leader or manager and as a team member are likely different from the cape and tight wearing Superhero image you carry around of yourself.
It’s either a brilliant defense mechanism or a cruel twist of fate that almost guarantees that we walk around with one (idealized) view of ourselves locked in our craniums, while everyone else in the world perceives something different.
Mind the Gap:
Understanding how big your “perception gap” is and working to close this gap is an important part of your professional development program, regardless of your role. And like everything else in life worth pursuing, measuring and managing your “perception gap” takes time, effort and the willingness to do something about the problem-areas. Oh, and don’t forget the need for a helping of humility.
11 Actions to Help You Measure and Manage Your Perception Gap in the Workplace:
1. Ask. Subordinates aren’t likely to give you a straight answer but peers and managers might get you a few degrees closer to the truth. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of noise in feedback, and all sources aren’t created equal.
2. Dig. Written performance evaluations and 360 feedback programs are minefields of frequently vague and often non-behavioral feedback lacking supporting examples, but you are duty bound to comb these documents like you’re an archeologist hot on the trail of King Tut’s brother’s tomb. There’s something valuable there somewhere, and you are going to be the one to unearth it.
3. Measure. Create an anonymous survey asking very specific questions and looking for specific examples in the answers, and request those you come in contact with regularly to complete and return the survey with their frank input.
4. Form: I’m a tremendous fan of recruiting a small group of trusted advisors (a peer group) to work together on measuring and managing perception gaps. Draft a charter and rules of engagement that define the purpose of the group/initiative and that clearly defines expectations for participation and privacy. Much like a project team, these peer groups are temporary in nature, and the focus is on helping each other strengthen good behaviors and reduce the behaviors that detract from your performance. Ideally, your peer group members are individuals who see you in a number of different settings.
5. Watch and Listen. Find as many opportunities as possible to record yourself. With the permission of your firm’s various powers and involved members, consider recording yourself in a number of different situations, including presentations and meetings. Work with your peer group to assess your involvement. Turn of the audio and watch your non-verbal behaviors. Ignore yourself and watch how people react to you. Take notes…and swallow another humility pill.
6. Write. Keep a journal. Seriously. Use your ipad or your pda or plunk down a couple of bucks for a moleskin notebook, but start documenting the feedback you receive, the efforts you are making to change, the reactions you are eliciting from others….and the areas where you struggle and stumble.
7-11: Plan, Do, Measure, Reflect and Refine. Learning and continuous improvement are essential to measuring and managing your “perception gap.” Understanding the size of the gap in different areas is important…taking action to improve (and monitoring your progress) is priceless.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
It’s unlikely that your self-image exactly matches the perception that others have of you, especially in circumstances where you are leading, coaching, selling, motivating or debating. It’s essential to your effectiveness as a professional and for your development throughout your career that you work hard to understand and manage these gaps. If you don’t, you might just fall in. The key question is, will anyone be there to pull you out?
–
About Art Petty:
Art Petty is a Leadership & Career Coach helping motivated professionals of all levels achieve their potential. In addition to working with highly motivated professionals, Art frequently works with project teams in pursuit of high performance. Art’s second book, Leadership Caffeine-Ideas to Energize Your Professional Development, will be published in September of 2011.
Contact Art via e-mail to discuss a coaching, workshop or speaking engagement. Check out Art’s on-line “Professional Development Sprints,” designed for the busy professional.
Introducing: Professional Development Sprints
Filed under: Career, Leadership, Leadership Skills, Management Education, Talent Management, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
Note from Art: today’s post is promotional in nature. Back to our regularly scheduled programming soon!
Professional Development Sprints: Practical, powerful coaching guidance and skills development plus a series of activities to apply immediately in the workplace, delivered on-line in 4 modules of 15 minutes or less. Review the programs as often as you desire during the 30-day subscription period, and use the suggestions in the downloadable Action Guide to keep on improving beyond the program.
Cost: $100. Return: Your professional development-priceless!
You Own Your Professional Development:
Long-time readers, customers (training and coaching) and my many management students well understand my conviction that you need to own your professional development over the course of your career. If you don’t take care of it, no one will. In this era of rapid change, ignoring your own development is a subscription to becoming global road kill.
You’ve got to take care of yourself!
Wanted in Professional Development-Convenience, Accessibility, Practicality and Cost-Effectiveness:
In the spirit of Peter Drucker’s classic article, “Managing Oneself,” I’m consistently asked by motivated professionals on guidance for continuing professional development beyond the classroom, training room or coaching engagement. I happily offer my ideas, from books to blogs to actions over time, and for some that’s fine. For others however, I appreciate that they’ve asked for something that goes beyond good reading, but doesn’t demand the time or cost of formal training or coaching.
Based on client demand for tools that energize and help sustain professional development in a convenient (translation: on-demand), practical and low cost way, I’m pleased to introduce my latest Building Better Leaders offering: Professional Development Sprints.
What a Professional Development Sprint Offers:
- On-demand access to Art (30 days per sprint). Listen/watch for 15 minutes and apply immediately.
- Skills development…exposure to new tools and approaches to solve problems
- Real world examples and experiences
- High Intensity encouragement and a bit of professional prodding from Art to get it in gear and start applying the concepts.
- Ideas/activities to put the new tools into play immediately!
- Actions to support your development beyond the program.
- Ideas and motivation to jump-start or sustain a professional development program.
What It’s Not:
- They’re not outrageously pretty….just practical and filled with ideas, examples, approaches and tools.
- They’re not a full blown substitute for in-depth skills training or comprehensive coaching
The First Sprint-Learning to Deliver Constructive Feedback with Confidence.
In slightly less than 60-minutes, I work with you to:
- identify and overcome fears/barriers to delivering feedback
- Identify and explain the 6 “must have” components for every constructive feedback discussion
- Teach you the importance of ensuring that your feedback is both behavioral in nature and must have a business rationale at its core.
- Offer you a process for properly planning and then delivering the toughest of discussions.
- Offer you a number of ideas to apply the concepts in each module in the workplace…and on how to sustain your on-going development and mastery of the art of delivering constructive feedback.
Your Return on Investment:
- Improved personal performance as a leader
- Increased confidence for tackling the important and difficult conversations
- Improved performance of your team members
- Improved unit and firm performance
- The increased respect for you from your team members…good professionals want and need feedback
- Confidence begets more confidence.
Enroll, Pay and Get Started Here!
An Offer You Can’t Refuse:
The first 10 registrants will receive free, signed copies of my forthcoming book: “Leadership Caffeine: Ideas to Energize Your Professional Development” (expected publication: September, 2011)
But Wait, There’s More:
OK, actually, that’s it for the offers. However, alumni gain a 20% discount on future Sprints. And for you Managers, Trainers and HR Pros, please know that group rates are available. Drop me a note to discuss your needs.
Future Sprints:
- Next: Improving Your Decision Making Effectiveness
- And then: Getting Started Successfully with Your New Team
- And right after that: For Experienced Leaders: How to Re-energize and Strengthen Your Leadership Approach and Results.
- Future Sprints based on your input.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
There’s no one magical approach to developing yourself, other than investing the time and deliberately striving to learn, improve and grow. I’m excited for my clients to offer one approach that will help energize and sustain any professional’s development efforts. The on-demand convenience and low-cost access are frosting on the cake. I’m looking forward to serving you in our first and in many more Professional Development Sprints to come.
Leadership Caffeine: 9 Ideas to Help You Jump the Gap Between Failure and Success
Filed under: Career, Leadership, Leadership Caffeine, Life and Business, Performance, Professional Growth, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
We didn’t see a way forward on this project, so we folded our tents and went home.
People and teams fail on their way to success all of the time. That’s great. That’s how it’s supposed to work. The people and groups I struggle with are those who just fail.
Often, the gap between failure and success appears wide, deep and ominous. This perceived gap keeps people frozen in place for a long while and then as time passes, fear turns to regret.
Regrets are soul killers.
Potential Author: I’ve always wanted to write a book, but who would care about what I have to say?
One thing is for certain…no one will care if you don’t start writing.
Newly unemployed individual: I need to go back to school. I’ve not upgraded my skills in 20-years.
There must have been a lot of great television shows on for those two decades.
Student: I didn’t study for the final because I was satisfied with a B.
Why? Really….why?
Potential Entrepreneur: I want to start this business. People have told me they will contract with me. I just don’t know where to start.
Start by putting one foot in front of the other. Ask for help. Talk to those who have already passed this way. Get going!
Flypaper and Failure:
Years ago, people hung flypaper in their homes to catch and kill flies. This sticky, poison-treated paper offers a nice metaphor for what happens to too many otherwise capable people. They view the distance to success as insurmountable, and instead of moving forward, they sit there, stuck, slowly poisoning themselves in their self-defeating thoughts.
Instead of being consumed by the poison of inactivity and regret while staring across a chasm that looks insurmountable, you need to get moving. If you’re leading others, now is the time to show that you know how to lead.
Nine Ideas to Help You Jump the Gap Between Failure and Success:
1. Start moving. Immediately. Don’t get caught on the flypaper. When you’re close to being stuck, remember that action overcomes stickiness. Now get going!
2. Run, don’t walk to download or purchase Steven Pressfield’s book, Do the Work. Based on his thoughts on “Resistance” outlined in The War of Art, this is the best kick-in-the-ass, get-moving book I’ve ever read. Buy one for everyone on your team if necessary. Pressfield will help all of you get unstuck and moving forward.
3. Ask for help. Get a good coach. We stink at coaching ourselves. Even coaches need coaches. And yes, teams can most definitely benefit from external coaching.
4. Flush your mind of the negative thoughts. Remember that no one cares that you think you cannot do something. No one. This is invisible to the world. It’s in your mind. However, people will care when they notice you doing something.
5. Ignore the critics. Critics show up once you start moving forward. Critics are typically people who feed on your actions because they don’t have any actions of their own. Ignore them.
6. Extra effort shrinks the failure gap. For writers, it’s butts in seats and hands on keyboards. For leaders, it’s often about taking the extra time to listen. For athletes, it’s the extra hour of training…beyond what’s expected or scheduled. No one has ever succeeded by doing too little. You know this…now, do something about it.
7. Get the toxicity out. More often than not, team troubles have their root causes in one or two toxic participants. These people are like critics. They have no actions of their own…only criticism of other people’s actions. Vote them off…or push them off.
8. Quit focusing on what you did wrong. Ask, what did I do right? Do more of it!
9. Become an Occasional Anthropologist. Go somewhere…anywhere but the couch or the office and watch people/customers in their native settings. Send your team out to the four corners of the earth. Observe and wonder. And then go back to work or back to your project and draw upon those observations for ideas and energy.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
The gap between failure and success is often much smaller than it appears. The catch is that you have to start moving to shrink the perceived gap and move towards success. Whether it’s your own professional development or that personal dream or aspiration, there’s only one way to jump the gap. Start moving now…and then start running. Happy landings!
–
About Art Petty:
Art Petty is a Leadership & Career Coach helping motivated professionals of all levels achieve their potential. In addition to working with highly motivated professionals, Art frequently works with project teams in pursuit of high performance. Art’s second book, Leadership Caffeine-Ideas to Energize Your Professional Development, will be published in September of 2011.
Contact Art via e-mail to discuss a coaching, workshop or speaking engagement.
Please Get the LinkedIn Invitation Right!
Filed under: Life and Business, Marketing Yourself, Social Commentary, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
LinkedIn is an increasingly popular and powerful professional tool. Like many other professionals, I enjoy connecting with others via LinkedIn, and find it a remarkably useful tool for making new contacts, remaining in contact and conducting talent and firm research of all types. However, a pet peeve of mine is the generic invitations that I frequently receive from people I do and don’t know. Cut it out!
If you are on LinkedIn, you know the generic invitation. It reads: “I would like to add you to my network.” Relying on this invitation is just wrong.
If you know the person and send that invitation, it’s just rude. What, you can’t take 20 seconds to jot a note to someone you haven’t seen or talked with in 15 years? If you think so little of the person you’re inviting to join your network, why invite?
If you don’t know the person and send that invitation, it’s rude and dumb. Why should anyone accept a generic invitation to connect with someone they don’t know? No introduction, no connection. You’re either a “collector” of connections, someone who is looking for numbers and access or, you missed the memo on social media etiquette.
3 “Must Haves” for Getting the LinkedIn Invitation Right:
1. Always customize the invitation! If you are interested in connecting with someone you’ve not met, introduce yourself!
2. Always establish context. If you are reconnecting with old friends or colleagues, take a few seconds to say, “Hello.” The years melt away and memories return in the warmth of a friendly greeting. If you are seeking to connect with someone you follow or admire, describe a reason for connecting.
3. Always showcase your willingness to serve as a valued networking partner.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
There are more ways than ever to connect with people, but numbers of connections are meaningless. Quality counts, and whether you are reconnecting or introducing yourself to someone new, take the time to make it personal and relevant.
-
Chosen by Guy Kawasaki's Alltop.com as a top site in the Leadership category.
Podcast
Available Now!
Practical Lessons
e-book
e-book-Leadership and the Project Manager - Developing the Skills that Fuel High Performance
